Junkyards may hold the fate of marina plan

December 02, 2001|By Annemarie Mannion. Special to the Tribune.

The future of a proposed southwest suburban marina and convention center along the shores of the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal may hinge on the results of an environmental study of two junkyards on the site.

"We're not concerned about most of the property, but we're concerned about the junkyards," said developer Tom Walsh, president of Heritage Renaissance Partners LLC in Willow Springs.

The 300-acre site is between Willow Springs Road and Illinois Highway 83. The plan, introduced in October to officials from Willow Springs and Lemont, includes expensive homes and recreational facilities.

After the unveiling, Mayor John Piazza of Lemont said elimination of the junkyards would make for a much more attractive entryway to the village.

Walsh said his company is selecting a firm to do an environmental assessment of property owned by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District and private owners.

Walsh said his company's lawyers have met with officials from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

The $300 million redevelopment project would include portions of the Illinois & Michigan Canal and the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal, where a 250-slip marina would be built. .

Most of the development would be on about 250 acres in Willow Springs, east of Illinois 83, where 241 condominiums, 189 town homes, 86 duplexes, 24 houses and 120 senior housing units are planned.

Dubbed Heritage Marina Village, that part of the site also would be home to a 350-room hotel and convention center, an indoor water park, restaurants and retail, the marina, a nine-hole golf course, a 3,000-seat bandshell, and an indoor facility for ice hockey, soccer and roller skating.

Where the junkyards are now, on 50 acres west of Illinois 83, a Metra station and about 50,000 square feet of light industrial or commercial space are planned.